An Instance Of Fire
by Shay Stark and Raven Rogers
Summary: Antonia Stark despised the idea of needing a bodyguard. She was not some helpless woman, after all. But Erica Powers is far more than just a bodyguard. Far more than anything any of the Avengers could have imagined. And she is about to prove it. Fem!verse. Femmeslash. Tony/OC and others. Rated for swearing, character death s , and sexual situations. Read & review.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: I do not own any of the lovely Avengers, but I do own the OCs and the plot, so stealing them would be quite unwise. This has been in my head for. . . I don't know, a few months? So I finally decided to write it out and I'm hoping for the best. This does contain femmeslash and het, so if you don't like, don't read. Read and review, darlings. 3**

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**An Instance Of Fire**

**Prologue**

It seemed predictable Antonia Stark would need a bodyguard, especially after becoming an Avenger. And since she was all about strong women, she told Fury she wanted a female bodyguard if she had to have one at all. She specified military experience, a college education, and enough common sense to live in the shadows. Someone who could step out of their current life and enter hers seamlessly, and if it was available, she wanted tolerance. Toni was not shy around men or women, and her bodyguard needed to know how to live with that. Those qualifications had been passed to Fury three days ago, but S.H.I.E.L.D. had always worked rapidly. On the walk to Fury's office, Toni could only hope the woman she had been called about would fit at least some of her standards. Strict though they were, she considered them necessary.

She combed her fingers through her hair as she pushed open the door to Fury's office. The rest of the team was already there, waiting, and a small group of people were positioned behind Fury's desk. Half of them were dressed in civilian clothing while the other half appeared to be S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Toni hoped one of the civilians was slated to shadow her since she was not fond of having an agent near her at all times. Besides, she had very little reason to believe an agent would protect her at any cost. She barely trusted Nicole Fury, so why would she trust someone who worked for Fury?

"Nice to see you could find time in your schedule to fetch your bodyguard," Fury said, her tone clearly betraying her irritation. As if Toni could somehow avoid the traffic that had made her thirty minutes late. "Come stand with the other so we can get this ordeal over with. I think you will be happy with the choice we made for you, Stark."

Sarcasm made her eyes narrow, but Toni moved to stand between Stephanie and Brie without a word. As soon as she had her guard, she was back on her plane so she could relax at home. She was tired, considering she had been on a work jag for two days and had slept very little on the flight. Stifling a yawn against the palm of her hand, she stood straight and tried to appear interested in what Fury had to say.

"You seven know the rules. If you're going to do your jobs, you need bodyguards to keep you from getting killed. Each of them has signed a legally binding contract that states the nature of their responsibilities and how much they will be paid for their services. Understood?" Fury asked.

The seven heroes muttered affirmations while Toni wondered why Lokie was now one of them. Last she checked, the princess hated humans.

Fury pointed to the princess and beckoned her forward, and one of the agents stepped forward. He was a man with hair so straight it could have been ironed, dark red with the barest hint of gold and long enough to rest on his broad shoulders. Dark blue eyes the color of blue rubies combed down Lokie's body, Adam's apple bobbing under skin darkly tanned either by genetics or the sun. Roman coin face, broad shoulders, lips lifted into a hint of a half-smirk. He looked like trouble, which meant he would be perfect for the Jotun princess. And from the way he was appreciating Lokie in her green satin gown, it was unlikely he would allow any harm to come to her. Be hard to fuck her if she was dead.

Before Lokie could speak, the agent swept into a bow and took her hand in his. "Agent Ramsey Glass, ma'am. Honored to be your bodyguard."

"What would make you feel such honor, Agent Glass?" Lokie asked, clearly not impressed with the gentleman attitude. "Surely you were briefed on my history. Monster. Traitress. Murderess. Does beauty truly make up for that in the eyes of a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent?"

"It would seem so," Glass said with a knowing smile.

Toni rolled her eyes, then stilled when she was gestured forward as well. She sauntered to Lokie's side and grinned when one of the civilians detached herself from the group. Like Glass, she looked like trouble. She wore a leather jacket open over a black shirt and white linen slacks, stark colors in comparison to the rest of her. Golden curls shot through with bronze tumbled around a face that was arrogantly pretty with glass-cutting cheekbones and full lips. Her eyes, ocean blue, were flecked with amber and shone vividly against her gold-kissed skin. When Toni stretched out one of her hands, she was pleased to have it shaken firmly, then released. At least Fury had found her a bodyguard she was enjoying looking at. She wondered if she had the time to plan a way to seduce the attractive woman in front of her and made a mental note to draw one up.

"I was told you wanted military training, college education, common sense, and tolerance aimed in the direction of your sexuality," the woman stated as she folded her arms behind her back. "Former Navy SEAL. Bachelor's in the Fine Arts from UCLA. I'm odd, so tolerance is nothing to worry about. At least, not from me. My name is Erica Powers."

Perfect credentials, then, though Toni was curious about what "odd" meant to her guard. "Excellent. In that case, let's go. I have work to do, and it can't wait until we introduce ourselves like it's lab partner day in science class. I'll be in Malibu if you need me, Fury."

She turned to leave the room and was pleased when she felt Erica fall in step behind her. Quiet loyalty was a hard quality to come by, one so rare she had not bothered requesting it, but her guard had it. It would be useful when she started to work on a private project and did not want anyone else to know. It would also help when she needed someone to carry her multitude of shopping bags since she promised Pepper they would go to the mall once she had a bodyguard. Had S.H.I.E.L.D. not forbid her from spending more than an hour outside at a time, they would have gone already. A ball was coming up over the weekend, and Pepper insisted on finding her a new gown for it.

Toni preferred suits with pants and heavy jackets to remind the men she worked with she was not a piece of meat for them to drool over. But Pepper insisted on a dress, and Toni was not in the mood to argue. Besides, modeling gowns in front of Erica might allow her to plant the lovely seeds of seduction. She wanted her guard in her bed one way or another, and a Stark always accomplished a set goal. It was the one lesson her father had ingrained in her when she was younger and showed signs of being a scientific prodigy. Failure was not an option.


	2. Chapter One

**An Instance Of Fire**

**Chapter One**

Lokie having a bodyguard amused Sif to no end as she watched the Jotun princess stalk out of the meeting room with a man looming in her wake. Oh, but little Lokie still managed to pull off her ethereal beauty even as she tossed her hair and threw angry curses at her guard, who looked entranced by her. It would break his heart to know Lokie preferred the touch of a woman, and Sif had been actively courting her since Thora had joined the Avengers. She had asked Odin to free her to the mortal realm so she could court his adopted daughter, and he said yes. To her, the mistakes her princess had made were to be learned from, not condemned and used against her. Lokie was too special, too beautiful, and too unique to be shunned and forgotten.

Sif stepped away from the wall she had been leaning against and called out to the woman she was smitten with. When Lokie whirled around to face her, she saw the princess's brow furrow. Not surprising. Sif normally dressed in armor to signify her position as a warrior of Asgard, but Thora insisted she dress like a human in Midgard. So, instead of her armor, she wore jeans, tennis shoes, and a black t-shirt. But Lokie still favored gowns, just Midgard styled now, and they clung to her slender frame and cupped her curves in a way Sif appreciated.

"How are you on this lovely day?" she asked the princess, taking Lokie's hand and gently kissing her knuckles.

The delicate flush that bloomed across Lokie's cheeks made her smile softly in return. "I am as well as I can be under a circumstance as ridiculous as this, but it cannot be helped. I did not expect to see you here."

"I would have called," Sif admitted as she dropped Lokie's hand to wrap her arm around the princess's slender waist, "but Darcy said it is more romantic to simply appear and surprise you, and so I thought I would. Did the bodyguard assignment go as expected?"

"Naturally. Thora is under the impression the woman assigned to protect her is just a liability, and Coulson is with Hawkeye," Lokie said, glancing at the man behind her.

Looking sobered and professional, the man smiled wistfully. "Agent Ramsey Glass, ma'am. I've worked as a bodyguard before, and I assure you I will do anything to protect your, uh, girlfriend."

Sif slanted a scowl at him, and he wisely chose to take a couple of steps in the reverse direction. Satisfied, she turned back to Lokie and stole a kiss from slightly parted lips, muffling Lokie's yelp with ease. She loved the soft texture of her beloved's lips against hers and the way Lokie fearlessly handed over the reins of control. When she allowed her hands to drop to Lokie's bottom, the squeak of shock her darling released made her smile into the kiss. It was another tip she had learned from Darcy, a Midgard tactic to inspire passion in her princess. She wanted to make Lokie fall for her with gentle words and soft kisses, but in the meantime, she did enjoy the caresses she snuck.

"Glad to know you're not embarrassed to grope me in public despite knowing Heimdall is telling Father's everything you do to me," Lokie mumbled, deep green eyes dazed even as she smiled lazily. "Can we leave before the others attempt to join us? I would like to spend time with you, but not with my sister hanging off of us."

"As you wish, milady. But perhaps you should change into something a bit more suitable for the mortal outdoors," Sif suggested.

Lokie scoffed but nodded, and Sif shifted to keep an arm around her love's waist as they entered the elevator. Though the beautiful gown was perfect on the princess's body, it was too nice and too dramatic for the casual dress of city life. It was the same reason Sif neglected to don her armor each morning. On the few occasions she had been armored in public, she had drawn unwanted attention to herself and frightened mortals who believed she had a mental disorder. She wore clothes Darcy had helped her pick out at a large store, and no one suspected she was anything but another human. Dressing in mortal clothes made it possible to be invisible, which is why she did it. That, and Darcy had hidden her armor.

The bunk room at the S.H.I.E.L.D. base was always in disarray, and it did not surprise Sif to find it in chaos once again. She eyes the pieces of clothing on the floor and tried to guess which Avenger each belonged to while Lokie changed in the bathroom.

Draped over the footboard of one bunk was a pink slip trimmed with lace, most likely Toni's. The t-shirt colored a menagerie of greens known as camouflage had to belong to Stephanie. Black leather pants were the favored clothing of Natasha, and the pretty yet plain lilac robe could be Brie's. But the one she as confused by was a short crimson nightgown trimmed with black lace laid out carefully on a bunk across the room. Most of the Avengers were less than feminine, and other than Miss Stark, the rest of them did not wear satins and lace.

"Admiring my sister's wardrobe?" Lokie asked, suddenly at Sif's side and running a hand down the slick satin. At Sif's startled look, the Jotun laughed and straightened. "Jane and Darcy are adamant in attempting to glamorize the others. Are these clothes more to your liking, or must I change again?"

"I like them," Glass chimed in.

Sif did as well, from the skintight jeans to the low-cut green sweater to the delicate black heels. It was hard not to notice how lovely the princess was even in normal clothes, and the warrior was proud to lay claim to her. Back in Asgard, men had swarmed Lokie for her quiet beauty, silver tongue, and her sharp mind, but she had brushed them away carelessly. Odin had worried his youngest planned on not choosing a partner, but his concern had been for naught. Lokie simply had saved her affection because when Sif began to pursue her, she had opened like a flower. Knowing she was the only one who could charm the Frost Giantess stroked Sif's ego in a way no amount of victories in battle or commendations from the Allfather could.

She drew Lokie closer and kissed her briefly, enjoying the way her Jotun princess relaxed against her. "As always, you have managed to astound me in your beauty. Let us go enjoy the afternoon together."

They scarcely had a chance to move toward the door when it burst open and the Avengers filtered in followed by bodyguards. Deciding to take advantage of the situation, Sif stole up to Lokie's bunk and waited for the princess to materialize beside her, which Lokie did a moment later. Wisely, Glass stayed on the ground.

"So, you're telling us Toni's bodyguard time travels," Brie said as she plucked her robe off of the floor, tone awed. "And she was accurate enough to be right where you landed, and then she brought you here? Do you know how she did it or how it's changed the present? Have there been any adverse effects to the journey? Did it make you nauseous?"

The bronze-skinned man at Stephanie's side laughed and sat down on the captain's bed. "Eric time travels, yes, and does so quite often. From what I understand, she eats junk food and downs Coke and coffee until it makes her shake. Then she jumps, which is what she calls it. To bring me back, she got hammered. And since I died, or I was supposed to, and no one found my body, there are no major changes. No adverse effects. No nausea. Just the unpleasant sensations of being in a new place I know nothing about. But I got Steph to help me figure out what I don't get."

"Of course. Just tell me what you want to know," Stephanie said, and Sif could have been wrong, but she thought she saw the captain's fair skin flush. Had Captain America met her match?

"Fascinating," Brie said as she sat down and waved her bodyguard, a stunning young man in a pair of camouflage pants, to join her. A young man who looked thrilled to do so, gazing at the doctor as if she was a goddess. "I would love to find time to interview her about the effects of time travel on her body. Think of what we could do if we could travel in time. The possibilities are endless. The amounts of research alone are phenomenal. I'm sure Toni would love the chance to observe ancient industrial techniques, and—"

Clarissa snorted loudly and leaned back into the arms of her guard, Agent Phil Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. "Leave the girl alone. You think she wants to be reminded she's a freak? She probably just wants a nice, quiet life and a steady paycheck. Take a breath and try to enjoy the hot guy hired to take care of your every need."

"And she'll find a way to avoid everything considering she's been on the run from us for the last ten years. Would still be if we hadn't made it clear she's an employee of Antonia Stark, not us," Coulson added as she sat down, Clarissa settling on his lap with a broad smile.

Sif made a mental note to speak to the Erica they were speaking about if fate crossed their paths. Until then, she hoped Stark did not put the poor woman through the ringer. No one deserved that.


	3. Chapter Two

**An Instance Of Fire**

**Chapter Two**

"I don't know why you insist on trying to weasel through every single party in a tux," Pepper said, evidently enjoying their little trip to the mall far more than Toni was. "What's wrong with this one? You've vetoed everything I've picked out so far."

Toni muttered some form of gibberish s she glared at her reflection in the mirrors of her private dressing room. Luckily, being rich meant she could pay people to pick out gowns for her, and then she chose which ones she hated the least. Well, Pepper did anyway.

The one she was currently being forced to model was white silk, low in the front with no back and later top ties around her neck. It was too revealing and too flashy, and too many men would notice her in it, which was the opposite of what she wanted. As usual, the dress was wrong on her. The green velvet had been too plush, the crimson satin too sexy, the yellow silk too sunny. Nothing was her style, and she was not showing up in something stupid. If she was going to be bullied into wearing one of the dresses chosen for her, she was going to like the way it looked on her in the store. No reason in wearing something she hated just so she could have another slew of press photos to hate.

"White makes my skin too dark," she said, yanking at the ties so she could free herself from the dress.

Pepper sighed and returned the dress to its hanger, then placed it on the reject rack. "No white, then. Which one do you want to try on next, then? We need to have one picked out tonight."

"Hell if I no," Toni said as she eyed the rack of dresses she had yet to try on. She glanced at Erica out of the corner of her eye, then turned to face her. "Your turn to pick an atrocity for me to model."

Erica stood slowly and approached the rack, gaze blank as she thumbed through the gowns. In a plain gray t-shirt and black suede pants, she managed a casual elegance that somehow made her fit in the brightly lit dressing room. No make-up, but Toni had been informed Erica did not use any lotions or creams or powders in any way. She was so real, silently picking through the dresses in front of her.

"Miss Stark? I brought the coffee you asked for," the assistant chirped as she popped into the room, tray in hand.

Toni thanked Odin and whatever other gods existed as she retrieved a mug and added four sugar cubes to it. While she sat down, still grateful for the dressing room assistants, Erica added a pale orange sheath and a pink dress with a short skirt to the reject rack all without a word. She stepped close to the bubbly assistant and made gestures as she spoke in a whisper Toni could not hear. Then the assistant nodded and hurried off, returning with a huge dress bag a moment later. Erica nodded, thanked her, and removed the bag to reveal the gown inside.

It was dark blue, shades away from black, and a satin so expertly made it shone in the fluorescent lighting in the room. The full skirt was gold split open across the blue, and it was strapless. Awed, Toni sat her coffee down and allowed Erica to help her into the gown, noting it laced up the back with gold-trimmed blue ribbons. It was something out of a fairy tale and fit her perfectly, and she noted the colors matched Erica's eyes with a small smile. She turned a few times, examining the way she looked from every angle, then nodded once at Pepper. Though the gown was so feminine it belonged in a romance novel, she liked it and liked the dark flash she saw shoot through Erica's eyes.

She smoothed her hands down the slick bodice and licked her lips as she watched Erica's face out of the corner of her eye. Though it was always difficult to detect a blush beneath darker skin, she noticed her bodyguard's face darkening to a deep scarlet before she averted her gaze. It was all Toni needed to see to know she loved her gown.

"This is the one," she announced, rolling her eyes when Pepper released a relieved sigh. "Can you untie me, Erica? Miss Potts, pay cash for this so I don't get an unexpected credit card bill. We need to get this to a dry cleaner with instructions to clean it carefully. Gold heels to go with it, and if you plan on putting my hair up, a ribbon to match the ones on the back."

As she spoke, she was aware of warm fingers on her back, loosening the ribbons before untying them. Calluses stroked down her back, and she was aware, also, of the intense fire in Erica's gaze. The mirror in front of them revealed the guard's flaming eyes, clenched jaw, and the way her chest shuddered with each breath. When Erica returned to her seat, she was red-faced and breathing heavily, forehead dotted with perspiration. It was a visible chip in Erica's façade of control, one that made Toni smile in triumph as she pulled her suit back on and began to button her shirt. There was nothing she enjoyed more than watching someone try to ignore their lust for her.

Now that the dress business was resolved and she was back in her Armani three-piece, she took a moment to examine her reflection. She was thirty-eight and looked good for her age, curves hidden beneath her black jacket and pants. Her skin was still smooth and the same flawless cinnamon it had been since she graduated form MIT. Since she had put off cutting her hair for a few years, it now fell past her shoulders and had enough body to fall into a bevy of soft waves, dark chestnut with just a hint of gray. Of course, she firmly believed her best features were her eyes, wide and earthen brown and framed with long, dark lashes. She grinned at her reflection, satisfied with what she saw.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Erica extract a phone from her pocket and answer tersely, face as cold and empty as stone. She spoke into the phone in a language familiar yet unknown, muscles coiling until it appeared painful to be so tense. When she finally hung up, she slumped in her seat and scrubbed a hand over her face.

"Is something wrong?" Toni asked the blonde, sharing a puzzled glance with Pepper. "Bad call or something?"

Erica nodded and combed her fingers through her hair, giving Toni a weak, tired smile. "That was my sister, Shawna, who is assigned to Thora. There was a fight between the princess and some woman named Sif over Princess Lokie. Bad enough both Shawna and Ramsey are having bones set in the med ward at this moment. They were trying to break up the argument, but Thora is as much of an Amazon as she looks. This will be the first time my sister has ever been seriously injured in a fight."

"Ever? As in first time? But you guys are bodyguards," Toni said, frowning at what Erica's words implied. How could a good bodyguard avoid injury if they were supposed to take a hit aimed at their charge?

"We're bodyguards because that bitch, Fury, had been after us ever since we were kids," Erica explained, waving Toni and Pepper to sit down. Only when they had did she continue. "Volunteering to watch you upstanding women is the only thing keeping us from being strapped to a lab table, poked and prodded with needles. We're special. In Shawna's case, she can read the insides of people's minds like open books, so fights are easy. She simply takes a peek at an opponent and wins. She told me she could see into Thora's mind, but she was taken aback at what she saw. It broke her concentration, and Thora broke three of her ribs. Enlighten me. The Princess Lokie? Is she or is she not Thora's sister?"

Toni hated that question just because it had been asked so frequently, but she held back her irritation. After all, Erica was new to working with the Avengers, and it was so like Fury to not brief the muscle on the situation within their happy little family. Forget the fact they were all women, and forget the fact despite being heroes, they all acted like horrid, spiteful bitches when they had bad days or got upset. Like women in the real world, they start needless and stupid fights and cry for absolutely no reason. But Fury liked to pretend being heroes made them higher than other women, immune to the emotional tumult normal women went through. As if. Fury should have told Erica about all of the drama and ill will, then sent her in with one clear thing to remember. One lesson that would make dealing with the lot of them a hell of a lot easier because it explained everything.

The Avengers were just like everyone else.

But back to Erica's question. "Yes and no."

"Care to expound upon that?" Erica asked, lips twisting in a wry grin as she slid her pone back into her pocket.

"Lokie was adopted by Thora's father when he found her struggling to live in a temple in Jotunheim," Toni said, surprised when Erica's face did not twist in confusion. "He disguised her and raised her in Asgard. But she found out what she was and went psycho bitch crazy and tried to destroy the planet realm thing she came from. Then tried to take over this one. She's only allowed to stay because Odin would kill her. And Thora loves her far too much to let her die. You know how it is. She's trying to stay close with Lokie, but it's not going so well. Expounded enough?"

Erica clicked her tongue, a nearly unnoticeable sound. Her eyes went vacant for a moment, and Toni was about to ask if something was wrong when movement in her peripheral vision caught her attention. She watched the last mug of coffee float into the air and drift into Erica's waiting hand without faltering or losing a drop of coffee. Stunned, she wondered if that was why Fury had been after Erica for so long. Sure, lifting a cup of coffee was hardly an extraordinary talent, but what else could she lift? Could she throw them, rip things open, warp them? So much could be done with the gift of telekinesis, after all, and Erica hardly looked strained with the effort she had expelled. On the contrary, she looked like she had done no more than bend over and retrieve the mug with her hands instead of with her mind.

Toni sucked in a breath and watched Erica float the empty mug back onto the tray. "I'm thinking Fury should have briefed all of us on all of you and vice versa. I didn't know you could do that."

"It's a parallel to what Shawna can do, you could say. Are we done in this store? The amount of windows makes me nervous," Erica said.

"Yeah. I've got a girl who buys my shoes and delivers them to the house," Toni said, recognizing the sudden change in subject as a sign to let the matter drop for the time being. "I've got projects to work on anyway, so we'll be down in my work area, and there are no windows. Only Pepper and Stephie have the codes to get in the house."

Erica cocked her head, eyebrows lifting. "I assume Stephie is Miss Rogers?"

"Stars and stripes girl, yeah. Come on. Let's get going." Toni stood and smoothed her jacket down, noting the way Erica swore and immediately averted her gaze. 'I want to get a cheeseburger before school lets out for the day."

Of course, eating a cheeseburger was the last thing on her mind. She was much more interested in putting her mouth to work on something slicker and wetter, but she had more work to do. Though it was visible in Erica's shift in mannerisms her plan was beginning to unfold, she knew it was not even in the same ballpark as making a move. She could act, but an attempt at wooing her bodyguard now would end up in her losing the woman who was supposed to protect her. Which meant another bitching session with Fury. And it meant she would not get a chance to tumble Erica into her sheets, which she was really starting to look forward to.

Oh well. Cheeseburger first.


End file.
